Kyoto!

I looked up the fare and itinerary to get to Kyoto online before we left for the station, but the lady working there told us it was a lower amount. So we bought a cheaper ticket. The way it works here, is that you buy a ticket with a certain amount on it, and put it through the machine when leaving your final station, if all goes well, the machine says thank you and the gate stays open. When the fare you paid is too low for the trip you took, the gate closes and a red light goes on and something beeps and you walk towards FARE ADJUSTMENT (a manned booth). Dennis, who let me go first after I already told him that we probably didn't pay enough, laughed at me and so did the guy working there. And of course I did too. We paid the difference and went on our way to our hostel.

As usual, we couldn't check in till 3 pm, so we left our luggage. The hostel suggests a itinerary for Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3, just our luck that we have 3 days here. We went on our way to do whatever was on Day 1, which was temples, temples, oh and a shrine. A lot of people 'dressed up' as Geisha, which you were able to do for about €40 for the day, which was a nice sight to see.

After hours of walking, we pretty much figured we'd seen all we needed to see and everything started to look the same or not as pretty as we had already seen. We headed in to town and walked around for a bit before heading back to our hostel to get settled in.

After an hour or so, we headed back downtown for dinner. We had Pizza and a beer :) and looked out over the river, which you can't see much of at night but it was still nice cause we also saw some of the city by night! Dennis even played a set of golf in the restaurant haha. When we finished, we went back to the hostel for a well deserved good night of sleep. 

Day 2
We both slept pretty well last night, even though we don't have a private room anymore and sleep in a dorm room with 8 beds. I guess we really needed it or maybe it was the curtains each bed has that blocked more light out than usual.

Enjoyed a free breakfast and set out for Day 2 of the recommended itinerary. First stop Fushimi Inara, which Dennis keeps referring to as 'the poles (de palen)'. I went here 2 years ago and I absolutely loved it, my favorite place here! When we arrived, we noticed that I wasn't the only one. It's been the no. 1 hotspot in Japan for 2 years in a row according to Tripadvisor! It is beautiful and so was the weather today. We walked up for a bit through these 'red wooden gates' with Japanese signs on them. Now picture not one, but dozens in a row :). Also a great spot to take pictures...which we also took dozens of. We walked around for a bit, visited some shops and headed back to the station for our next stop.

Next up, Bamboo path, which I also visited 2 years ago. The name says enough, a path filled with tower high bamboo left and right. Beautiful and serene to walk through! Walking through it, we stumbled upon the Tenry-ji Temple, which we decided to go in to. It is afterall a UNESCO World Heritage place and boy does it has the right to be. What an amazing place. Beautiful fall colored trees, a beautiful lake and the temple, a must see!

After all of this, we walked down to the river which lays next to a forest that goes all the way up. Another beautiful sights and a lot of tourists that rented little rowing boats or did a tour in a bigger boat. We had lunch at a restaurant that looked out on all of this :).

And the final stop today: The Golden Temple. A super touristy spot, as is most of what we saw but nonetheless does that make it any less pretty. A one of a kind golden temple.

A great day, especially if you only have one day: DO THIS! 

To get away from all the touristy and serenity, we went to McDonalds for dinner and to Yodobashi (which is a HUGE store of electronics, you imagine it, they've got it. Even a Tamagochi - which costs almost €50,- these days since it's super upgraded)!

We've got another full day tomorrow, including a HALLOWEEN party, that lasts till late....which is 1:30pm here hehe..

Day 3
I can be pretty short about our last day, visited yet another temple and walked around for a bit. Went back to the hostel to take a nap. Since somebody was snoring last night, we didn't get a great nights sleep. Went out with one of the guys that works here, but he left earlier. Went to a bar and a nightclub, in which I (being a girl) enjoyed free entrance and a free drink :)! Dennis paid about €4,- and got a free drink too. There's Japanese dancing to the music and others just watching them, funny sight. Went back to the hostel quite early.

Day 4
Another Snorefest last night, jeez! Breakfast and we're now ready to leave for TOKYO! Our final stop and how else to get there than taking the Shinkansen, which can go up to 300km/hr! It will only take us 2 hours and 17 minutes to get there, it's about 500 km away.

Until then, Sayonara!!